Connecting means for two-part automobile doors



M. R. HULL CONNECTING'MEANS FOR Two-PART AUToMoBILE DOORS Filed March 29. 1924 June 16, 1925.

(11H01 nu? Patented June 16, 1925.

UNITED s'rArEs y A 4innata PATENT ortica iviAfrfrHEwY n. nonnen coNNERsvILLE, INDIANA, AssIGNcn To REXIIIANUEACTUN- ING coMrANmoE coNNERsvILLE, INDIANA, A CORPORATION or INDIANA.

CONNECTING MEANS FOR TWO-PART AUTOMOBILE DOOR/S.

. Application filed March 29, 1924. Serial No. 702,958.

. To oZZ whom t may concern.'

Be it kno-wn that I, h/IArrrInw It. HULL, acitizen of the United States, residing at Connersville, in the county of Fayette and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Connecting Means for Two-Part Automobile Doors, of which the following is a specification.

My said invention relates to aV connector for two-part doors such as are used on automobiles `having demountable winter tops, the upper door section being attached to the permanent lower section in a manner to be readily demountable. It is an object of l5 my invention to provide a connector of simple and inexpensive form which is so constructed as to bias the upper and closing sides of the upper door section toward the vehicle body and secure a close but yielding joint when the door is closed. y

Referring to the drawings which are made a part hereof and on which similar reference characters indicate similar parts;

Figure 1 is a side eleva-tion of an autoincbile door embodying my invention, the view `showing the inner side of the door;

Figure 2 a fragmentary elevation showing the connector at the hinge side of the door as viewed from the left; and

Figure 3 a similar view of the connector at the closing side of the door viewed from the left. p

In the drawingsV reference character 10 indicates a demountable door section and 11 a permanent vdoor section. The demountable section includes a wooden frame having upper and lower members 11 and 12 and side members 13 and 14 which support the parts of the door and one or more panes of glass, 15.

A connector is mounted at the hinge side of the door this connector having upper and lower arms 16 and 17 respectively connected by a normally horizontal body 18. The arm 17 projects into a socket in the permanent door section and the arm 16 into CTI a socket on the demountable door section ,body ofthe connector which opening may be cylindrical ,or may consist merely of a pair of ridges lying closely adjacent to said body.`

A similar connector is secured in similar manner to the closing side of the door, this connector having arms 23 and 24 which may be similar in every respect to the arms 16 and 17 except that they lie in diverging planes intersecting at the body as clearly shownin Figure 3. The effect of this is that in order to maintain the upper section on the lower section the arm 2e must be forced .toward a plane common to all parts of the connector thereby twisting the body portion. 7O When the arm is now forced into the socket in the lower door section the torsional strain of the connector tends to tilt the upper door section ina manner to bias its upper and closing sides toward the vehicle body.

It will be obvious to-'those skilled in the art that changes may be made in my device Y without departing from the spirit of the invention, and therefore I do not limit myself to the precise construction shown in the drawings and described in the specification but only as indicated in the appended claims, for example, a connector `might be placed at the hinge side similar to that vat the closing side or the connectors might be interchanged or one of the connectors might be replaced by different means having the same function and the lower arms might be connected to the lower door section in various other ways.

Having fully described my said invention what I claim is:

41. In a two-part door for vehicles, a demountable upper door section, a permanent lower door section, a connector at the hinge side of the door comprising upper and lower parallel arms secured to the respective sections and an angularly related body in the same plane with the arms said body ybeing fixed t-o the upper section, and a similar con- 100 nector similarly secured at the closing side of the door the last-named connector having its arms located in diverging planes whereby when it is forced into position on the `lower door section the body of the connector is twisted to bias the upper edge, of the de mountable door section toward the vehicle body, substantially as set forth.

2. In a two-part door for vehicles, a demountable upper door section, a permanent y lower door section, a pair of sockets on the upper section near opposite sides thereof, a pair or' sockets on the lower door section spaced inwardly from those irst named all of the sockets being,` normally parallel, and a pair of connectors each having,` a horizontal body secured along the lower side of the upper door section, an ascending` arin in an upper socket, and' a depending arin i-n a lower socket the arms on one connector being located in diverging planes to bias the upper edge of the deniountable section toward the door traine, substantially as set forth.

3; In a two-part door for vehicles, a demountable upper door section, a permanent lower door section, a pair of sockets on the upper section near opposite sides thereof, a pair of sockets on the lower door section spaced inwardly from those first named all of the sockets being normally parallel, and a pair of connectors each having a horizontal body secured along the lower side of the upper door section, an ascending arm in an upper socket, and a depending arin in a lower socket the arms on the connector at the closing side being located in diverging planes to bias the closing side of the deinountable section toward the door frame, substantially as set forth.

ln witness whereof, l have hereunto set my hand and seal at Connersville, Indiana this 25th day of March, A. D. nineteen hundred and twenty-four.

MATTHE HULL. [L s] Titnesses z C. C. HULL, R, H. CRAWFORD. 

